Mumbai: The Crime Branch of the Mumbai Government Railway Police (GRP) has arrested a habitual offender involved in a series of thefts on Mumbai’s local trains. The accused was targeting passengers who kept their bags and valuables on the overhead luggage racks and got distracted by mobile phones or fell asleep during their commute.
The accused, identified as Roy Cowgool Vargis (47), with no permanent residence, was apprehended by the Dadar Crime Branch team while loitering near CSMT railway station on October 17.
Vargis was detained and later confessed to his involvement in multiple thefts, including a case registered at the Kalyan Government Railway Police Station (Case No. 1248/2025) under Section 305(C) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Modus Operandi of the Accused
According to the police, Vargis boarded local trains from CSMT or Dadar (down direction) and observed passengers who had placed their belongings on the luggage racks and became distracted. He would then steal the unattended bags and disembark at the next station. He reportedly employed a similar modus operandi on trains heading in the upward direction from Kalyan and Dombivli.
Recovery of Stolen Items
Following his arrest on October 17, 2025, Vargis led the police to recover stolen goods worth a total of Rs 1,28,499. The recovered items included an HP laptop valued at Rs 70,000, a Dell laptop bag worth Rs 10,000, and a mobile phone valued at Rs 20,000.
Additionally, the police recovered a Titan watch priced at Rs 12,000, a Bluetooth speaker and headphones together worth Rs 4,000, and two other items valued at Rs 13,499 and Rs 9,000 respectively. Several other miscellaneous items were also seized as part of the recovery.
Police Leadership and Investigation Team
The operation was conducted under the leadership of M. Rakesh Kalasagar, Commissioner of Police (Railways), Mumbai, and Javed Khedkar, Senior Police Inspector, Crime Branch, GRP Mumbai.
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The investigation team included officers from the Dadar Crime Branch Unit: API Mangesh Khade, PI Rajesh Bhadale, PSI Ganesh Harishchandre, and police personnel Rakesh Bhamre, Mahendra Kadile, Prashant Saluke, Prashant Redekar, Sujeet Magade, Gopal, Akshay Desai, and Vishwajeet Nagare.
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